Ugh, I'm sure it's the phones.

30 years ago people didn’t have their faces in a cell phone screen constantly. It takes away the stigma of eating alone.

I was at a SLAC late 90s and I often walked to class alone because I didn’t live near other students in my classes or match schedules with my friends all that often. I probably ate lunch alone 50% of the time or more. But almost always ate dinner with friends, and definitely hung out with them around campus even if we were companionably working on different things together. So it may have just been your timing? I don’t know.

I went to UVa in the ‘90s and it wasn’t unusual for me to each lunch alone. There were multiple dining halls and my friends and I were often in different area of campus in the middle of the day. As others have stated, I did eat dinner with my friends.

Anonymous wrote:Were they all looking at their phones?

This is the answer.

A lot of it is a sign of the times. We didn’t have social media to keep us company (thank goodness).

I went to a SLAC too. I could always find people in the dining halls I knew and with whom I could sit with. My guess is that at a big school this rarely happens unless you are at a dining hall near your dorm.

My kid goes to a large public university. Similar to other posts, I think it’s common enough that students sometimes eat lunch by themselves because of class schedules, but often eat dinner w friends and dorm mates. And, yes, everyone is on a phone these days 😬

Were they all looking at their phones?

Saw this on some tours with my kids. It was a turn off for both of them and they wound going to schools where that was not the case and are quite happy.

Similar here for both me (groups at LAC) and DD (sometimes alone). Glad we're not alone. For mine, it's about getting everything in. Sometimes she doesn't have much time between classes or between class/rehearsal. And, there are several dining halls, and classes aren't as regular as when I was in school. So, I guess that's just how kids roll nowadays.

It depends on the school, too.

I think it depends on time of day. My DC sometimes has lunch alone because some days only has a small break between classes and just goes quickly to grab lunch. Other days when has more time, eats with friends. I think dinner would be a better indicator of how students interact.
Same goes with walking between classes, etc.

I also went to a liberal arts college 30 years ago and recall people generally eating in groups (like high school!). I remember it being a thing to discuss schedules and find out who would be available to meet up. However, the dining hall also was not open all day / late at night either, and you couldn't go an unlimited number of times. DC at a large state U goes multiple times a day for quick bites. Also, everyone has a cell phone, of course, so there is something to stare at other than food / other people, if eating alone.

Not sure if it's a generational thing or big state school thing. I went to a SLAC 30 years ago and it was super rare to see people eating by themselves.

When we've eaten in the dining halls on admitted student days, seems like half the kids are eating by themselves. Also see vast majority of kids walking by themselves or sitting in common areas by themselves.

Is this just how it is these days or is this because of the size of the school so this was happening 30 years ago as well at large state schools?